Lincoln Theatre

To Ron and MB848 – The realtor’s office is the site of the theatre. My wife’s family used to live next door to the theatre. What is now the parking lot on the corner of Chubbuck St. was a small complex with a small boating supplies shop, a variety store, and a neighborhood bar. Above these businesses were rented rooms mostly occupied by workers from the shipyard. This complex was separated from the theatre by a small alleyway. At the end of the alleyway was the entrance to a bowling alley which was located under the theatre. For this reason it was necessary to go up a flight of stairs from street level to get into the theatre. There were also rooms above the theatre that were rented to shipyard workers.

I lived in the area, 6th Ave, the street behind the theater. When I lived there they had matinees for .25, this was the late 60’s. From a street level entrance you would go up an incline to the lobby area and snack bar. The theater was 3 section-2 isle setup down to the screen area. When I attended matiness, the balcony was closed! The bowling alley had 10 lanes. The entrance was from the side alley. It had a long staircase down to the lanes. I was kind of an alleyrat back then and would sneak in to watch or bowl if I found some extra money (again .25 a string and bowling in stocking feet!!) Talking to old friends in the area after I moved away in 1970, small fires and disrepair took it’s toll and the building was taken down by the late 70’s. If you look at the street view from above looking at the r/e building, on the left is a white home which abutted the theater. The curb cut in front of the r/e building is where the alley was. From the late 60’s to the 80’s from the theater all the way down the right to the trees was lost to fires, one with loss of life.

The entry to the bowling alley was from the side alley. After entry you would desend a longish stairway to the lanes. This basement was quite deep. When the alley was closed, I would go to the other side of the building from the entrance and peer into a louvered exhust window. I was always amazed by the distance down! I don’t recall any stairs in the theater except to the balcony.

They both were not open all the time. I don’t remember if they were seasonal(no A/C?) or only if they found someone to run them. So I don’t know when it ‘officially’ closed for good. I think the lanes lasted longer than the theater, business wise, but not much longer(fire + water damage to it).

The Lincoln Theatre was the subject of the occasional “Whatever Happened to —–” feature in the Quincy Patriot Ledger of Jan 30, 2019. There is a demolition photo somewhat similar to the one posted here. The copy says that it opened in the WW I era as the Casino Theatre. It was run for over 20 years by J. Alcide “Al” Beaumier, owner of the American Anodizing Corp. in Quincy. A fire led to a renovation and re- opening in 1935. It had a new a.c. system, a system for the hearing-impaired, a mammoth chandelier, and nearly 1,000 seats. Various live events were presented. At one rally during WW 2, $ 151,000 worth of War Bonds were sold. In April 1951, an electrical fire in the bowling alley forced 40 bowlers and 100 movie goers to the street. Al Beaumier was killed in an auto accident in Quebec in 1956. The Lincoln closed in the mid-1970s and was demolished in 1980. A commercial building is on the site today.